Bird flu found in black-headed gulls

Avian flu (H5N1 virus) is now also circulating among black-headed gulls. The Dutch Wildlife and Health Center (DQHC) reports that the contagious bird disease has been diagnosed more often in that bird species since the end of January and warns of a high risk of an outbreak next month. Then the birds come together in large numbers to breed.

The virus was found in five dead black-headed gulls in Ermelo and Rotterdam. Dead congeners from Flevoland, Overijssel, Limburg and Utrecht are still being examined for the virus. It is assumed that those black-headed gulls have also been killed by the avian flu.

Black-headed gulls are numerous and can be found all over the country. The birds sleep on islands in swamps and open water, where they also establish breeding colonies. There they often sit together with many birds.

In 2021-2022, bird flu was present for the first time for an entire year in the Netherlands, on various poultry farms and in nature. According to the NVWA, almost 6 million birds were culled in that ‘bird flu year’, of which 1.1 million preventively. That is the deadliest year since the epidemic in 2003, when more than 30 million birds were culled.

To somewhat prevent further spread, the DWHC calls on dead or sick birds to be reported as soon as possible. Cleaning up carcasses can help reduce the number of infections.

If the virus stays, what are the risks? And what can you do about it? You can see it in the video we made earlier: